Blanket washing apparatus for use with printing presses



B. BONESCHI Nov. 19, 1968 BLANKET WASHING APPARATUS FOR USE WITH PRINTING PRESSES 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 7, 1967 INVENTOR.

Nov. 19, 1968 B. BONESCHI 3,411,444

BLANKET WASHING APPARATUS FOR USE WITH PRINTING PRESSES Filed March 7, 1967 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 r I A on --I v r- NAH n 3 t j CM 0 c3 I i 0 4 N N Np, I I

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INVENTOR.

7,0 4 Claims. (Cl. 101-425 ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Apparatus for washing and drying the blanket cylinder of offset presses, consisting of two bands covered with spongy material, running in closed circuit parallel to the axis of the cylinder, mounted so as to bring either band in contact with the cylinder, one of the bands being provided with dampening means.

Background of the invention It is well known that during the use of offset presses washing and surface drying of the transfer cylinder, known as a blanket cylinder, are necessary in order to remove small particles of ink or other residues that may produce undesirable marks on printed copies. It is also well known that at present these operations are usually performed manually with a considerable waste of time and labor.

Summary of the invention The object of this invention is an apparatus that enables the rubber-covered cylinder to be washed and dried mechanically in a short time and with minimum employment of labor.

The apparatus in question consists essentially of two side-by-s-ide bands running in closed circuit or elongated loops in a direction parallel to the axis of the cylinder to be washed, said bands, with the outer surface covered with spongy material, being mounted in two frames swinging around an axis parallel to the axis of the cylinder so that by operating an arm integral with said frames either band can alternately be brought in contact with the cylinder, and means being provided to dampen one of the two bands intended for washing.

This feature and others will more clearly appear with reference to the embodiment illustrated by way of example.

Brief description of the drawings FIGURE 1 shows a cross-section of the apparatus.

FIGURE 2 shows a plan view.

FIGURE 3 shows a detail of the dampening device.

FIGURES 4 and 5 show side views along arrows A and B of FIG. 2.

Description of the preferred embodiment The preferred form of apparatus illustrated is made up of a frame formed by a U-flanged plate 1 and an L- flanged plate 2 welded to a coupling 3 that is mounted swingingon two coaxial pins 4-4 fastened to the shoulders of the press, said coupling being provided at one end with arm 5 that can take three positions AB-C to be described below.

On the frame part 1 the two end rolls 6 and 7 are mounted, on which runs washing band 8, covered on the outside with spongy material 9, while on frame part 2 two other end rolls 10-11 are mounted on which runs drying band 12, also covered with spongy material 13.

United States Patent 0 Patented Nov. 19, 1968 ice Both bands are driven by two motors (one per band) 14 and 15 which, by means of belts, impart motion to rolls 6 and 10 of the two bands respectively.

Both bands 8 and 12 run with one active branch below and in contact with the external planes 1849 of the bottoms of the frame and with the other branch inside said frame, in which two tension rollers 20-21 are set up to regulate the tension of both bands. Members 18 and 19 serve to engage the back sides of bands 8 and 12 so they may be pressed against the surface of the cylinder 30.

Washing band 8 is provided with two consecutive dampening devices, each consisting of a hollow roll 23 having radial holes 24 and turning on a pin 25 fastened to frame 1, while through axial hole 26 opposite the one bearing the pin a pipe 27 which pours the washing fluid from the corresponding tank 28 inside roll 23 enters and egresses freely. The. hollow rolls are also cove-red with spongy material.

There are two dampening devices, one being intended to contain the washing mixture, such as kerosene-benzine, and the other only water. Dampening rolls 23 turn in contact with the spongy covering of the band which therefore receives the fluid coming out of holes 24. It is to be noted that at the end of the frame and opposite washing band 8 there is mounted a rubber-covered steel scraper blade 29, the slant and distance of which can be regulated to remove the dirty fluid carried by the band which was in contact with cylinder 30 of the press. The means for regulating the blade are mounted inside the frame so that the dirty fluid the blade separates from the band cannot flow off the sides but drops into tray 31 provided with discharge pipe 32.

The entire apparatus can be easily removed and easily mounted since coupling 3 can consist of two semi-cylindrical shells interconnectibly by means of a sliding collar or the like, after they have engaged the two pins. Once the apparatus is mounted on both pins 4-4, arm 5 is brought into central position A in which both bands are separated from blanket cylinder 30. By then turning cylinder 30 and operating the motors of the two bands, arm 5 is brought into posit-ion B. In such position band 8, running on the surface of cylinder 30 and soaking up the washing fluid, washes vigorously. By then shifting arm 5 to position C, band 12 is brought in contact with cylinder 30 and the same band, not being dampened, will dry cylinder 30.

The invention in its broader aspects is not limited to the specific mechanism shown and described but departures may be made therefrom within the scope of the accompanying claims without departing from the principles of the invention and without sacrificing its chief advantages.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for washing and drying the blanket cylinder of an offset press comprising in combination two side-by-side endless absorbent bands, pairs of rollers for supporting and guiding said bands as elongated loops parallel to the axis of the cylinder, a frame pivotally mounted to move about an axis parallel to the cylinder whereby one band or the other may be moved into contact with the surface of the cylinder, means engaging the back sides of the belts for pressing the bands against the cylinder, means for driving one of the rollers of each pair to drive the band-s and means for supplying dampening fluid to one of said bands.

2. Apparatus as in claim 1, characterized in that the pivotally mounted frame is removably mounted on two movable pins fastened to the sides of the press, so that it can be easily removed for cleaning and remounted for use.

3. Apparatus as in claim 1, characterized in that the means for supplying fluid to the washing band consists of a fluid supply tank, a perforated hollow roll covered with spongy material and mounted idle on a horizontal pin, into which roll the end of a pipe coming from the fluid tank axially projects, the roll being mounted on the frame so as to turn in contact with the spongy material of the upper reach of the band and to dampen same with the fluid coming out of the holes before it reaches the return roll and passes to the lower reach.

4. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which a scraper is mounted near one end of the band to be dampened to engage the surface of the band and a tray is mounted on the frame beneath the scraper to receive material scraped from the band.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 7/1905 Brod 101-425 2/1939 Von Heinrich 101-468 10/1950 Wescott 101-425 6/1963 Gericke 101425 2/1964 Simon 101425 FOREIGN PATENTS 4/1923 France.

ROBERT E. PULFREY, Primary Examiner. JOHN R. FISHER, Assistant Examiner. 

